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[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 78 (Friday, April 23, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21280-21282]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-9516]

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and 
Integrity (NACIQI) Meeting

AGENCY: National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and 
Integrity, Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.

What is the purpose of this notice?

    The purpose of this notice is two-fold. It is to:
    (1) Announce the public meeting of the NACIQI to be held Tuesday-
Thursday, September 14-16, 2010, in Washington, D.C., at the U.S. 
Department of Education, which is predicated on the appointment of 
members prior to that date; and
    (2) Invite written comments concerning the recognition of any 
agency published in this notice.
    This notice presents the proposed meeting agenda and informs the 
public of its opportunity to attend this meeting. The notice of this 
meeting is required under section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act, section 114(d)(1)(B) of the Higher Education Opportunity 
Act, and section 114(d)(1)(B) and (D) of the Higher Education Act, as 
amended.
    In all instances, written comments about agencies seeking initial 
recognition, continued recognition, and/or an expansion of an agency's 
scope of recognition must relate to the Criteria for Recognition found 
at section 496 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, and 34 
CFR parts 602 and 603. In addition, comments for any agency whose 
interim report/compliance report is proposed for review must relate to 
the issues raised within the letter that requested the report.

When and where will the meeting take place?

    Depending on when the appointment of members is made to the NACIQI, 
the public meeting will be held on Tuesday-Thursday, September 14-16, 
2010, from 8:30 a.m. until approximately 5:00 p.m., at the U.S. 
Department of Education, Eighth Floor Conference Center, 1990 K Street, 
NW., Washington, DC.

What assistance will be provided to individuals with disabilities?

    The meeting site is accessible to individuals with disabilities. If 
you will need an auxiliary aid or service to participate in the meeting 
(e.g., interpreting service, assistive listening device, or materials 
in an alternate format), contact Melissa Lewis at melissa.lewis@ed.gov 
at least four weeks before the scheduled meeting date. Although we will 
attempt to meet a request received after that date, we may not be able 
to make available the requested auxiliary aid or service because of 
insufficient time to arrange it.

What is the role of the NACIQI?

    The NACIQI is established under Section 114 of the Higher Education 
Act (HEA), as amended, 20 U.S.C. 1011c. Congress created NACIQI to 
assess the process of accreditation and the institutional eligibility 
and certification of institutions of higher education under Title IV of 
the HEA.

[[Page 21281]]

What are the functions of the NACIQI?

    The NACIQI advises the Secretary of Education about:
     The establishment and enforcement of the Criteria for 
Recognition of accrediting agencies or associations under Subpart 2 of 
Part H of Title IV, HEA.
     The recognition of specific accrediting agencies or 
associations.
     The preparation and publication of the list of nationally 
recognized accrediting agencies and associations.
     The eligibility and certification process for institutions 
of higher education under Title IV, HEA.
     The relationship between: (1) Accreditation of 
institutions of higher education and the certification and eligibility 
of such institutions, and (2) State licensing responsibilities with 
respect to such institutions.
     Any other advisory functions relating to accreditation and 
institutional eligibility that the Secretary may prescribe.

What items are on the proposed agenda for discussion at the meeting?

    Proposed agenda topics include the review of nationally recognized 
accrediting agencies and State approval agencies for nurse education 
that have submitted petitions for renewal of recognition and/or an 
expansion of an agency's scope of recognition, or a compliance report, 
formerly an interim report.

What agencies does the department propose NACIQI will review at the 
meeting?

    The Secretary of Education recognizes accrediting agencies and 
State approval agencies for nurse education if the Secretary determines 
that they meet the Criteria for Recognition. Recognition means that the 
Secretary considers the agency to be a reliable authority as to the 
quality of education offered by institutions or programs it accredits 
that are encompassed within the scope of recognition he grants to the 
agency. As part of the recognition process, agencies are sometimes 
asked to submit a compliance report. A compliance report, formerly an 
interim report, means a written report that the Department requires an 
agency to file to demonstrate that the agency has addressed 
deficiencies specified in a decision letter from the senior Department 
official or the Secretary, per 34 CFR 602.3. There may also be other 
reports due that were previously requested by the NACIQI prior to 
August 14, 2008, when the Higher Education Opportunity Act was enacted.
    The following agencies are proposed to be reviewed during the 
September 14-16, 2010 NACIQI meeting:

Nationally Recognized Accrediting Agencies

Compliance Reports

    1. Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools, 
Accreditation Commission.
    2. Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education.
    3. Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational 
Program.
    4. Council on Education for Public Health.
    5. Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (progress 
report).
    6. The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association 
of Colleges and Schools.

Petition for Initial Recognition

    1.AdvancED.

Petitions for Renewal of Recognition

    1. American Academy for Liberal Education.
    2. American Board of Funeral Service Education.
    3. American Speech Language Hearing Association, Council on 
Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology.
    4. Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation.
    5. Council on Naturopathic Medical Education.
    6. Midwifery Education Accreditation Council.
    7. Montessori Accreditation Council for Teacher Education, 
Commission on Accreditation.
    8. National Accrediting Commission of Cosmetology Arts and 
Sciences.
    9. New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Commission on 
Technical and Career Institutions.
    10. Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting 
Commission for Schools.

Request for an Expansion of Scope and Name Change

    1. North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School 
Improvement, Board of Trustees.

State Agencies Recognized for the Approval of Nurse Education

Compliance Report

    1. Missouri State Board of Nursing.

Petition for Renewal of Recognition 1.

    1. Montana State Board of Nursing.

When, where, and how should I submit my written comments?

    Submit your written comments by e-mail no later than May 23, 2010, 
to the Accreditation and State Liaison (ASL) Records Manager at 
aslrecordsmanager@ed.gov with the subject line listed ``Written 
Comments re: (agency name).'' In all instances, your comments about 
agencies seeking continued recognition and/or an expansion of an 
agency's scope of recognition must relate to the Criteria for 
Recognition.

Do Not Send Material Directly to NACIQI Members

    Only materials submitted by the deadline to the e-mail address 
listed in this notice, and in accordance with these instructions, 
become part of the official record and are considered by the Department 
and the NACIQI in their deliberations.

Will this be my only opportunity to submit written comments regarding 
agencies listed in this notice that are proposed to be reviewed by 
NACIQI at the meeting?

    Yes. This notice announces the only opportunity you will have to 
submit written comments on those agencies for this meeting. However, a 
subsequent Federal Register notice will publish another meeting notice 
and invite individuals and groups to submit requests to make oral 
presentations before the NACIQI on the agencies proposed for review. 
That notice, however, does not offer a second opportunity to submit 
written comments. If other agencies are added to the agenda when it is 
finalized, an additional notice will be published soliciting written 
comment on those agencies.

What happens to the written comments that I submit?

    Any third-party written comments regarding an agency received by 
May 23, 2010, in accordance with this Federal Register notice, will 
become part of the official record. Those comments will be considered 
by the Department in its review of the agency's submission and by the 
NACIQI when it the agency's submission at the September 2010 meeting.

Where can I inspect petitions and third-party comments before the 
meeting and the meeting records?

    The redacted versions of all materials submitted by agencies and 
any third-party comments received in advance of the meeting will be 
available for public inspection and copying, concurrently with their 
availability to the NACIQI, which we anticipate will be in mid-to-late 
July. The materials will be available at the U.S. Department of 
Education,

[[Page 21282]]

Office of Postsecondary Education, Room 7126, 1990 K Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20006, telephone 202 219-7011, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays; and at the 
National Library of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Plaza Level 
(Level B), Washington, DC 20202, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays. It is preferred that an 
appointment be made in advance of an inspection.

What happens to comments received after the deadline?

    Department staff will review any comments received after the 
deadline. If such comments, upon investigation, reveal that the agency 
is not acting in accordance with the Criteria for Recognition, we will 
take action either before or after the meeting, as appropriate. 
Documents responsive to this notice but received after May 23, 2010, 
will not be distributed to the NACIQI for its consideration. 
Individuals making oral presentations may not distribute written 
materials at the meeting.

How do I request to make an oral presentation?

    On or before August 14, 2010, the Department of Education will 
publish another notice of the meeting in the Federal Register and will 
invite interested parties, including those who submitted third-party 
written comments concerning agencies' compliance with the criteria for 
Recognition, to make oral presentations before the NACIQI.

How do I request to present comments regarding general issues rather 
than specific accrediting agencies?

    Also, in the same Federal Register notice inviting oral comments 
concerning the agencies' compliance with the Criteria for Recognition, 
the public will be invited to make general comments pertaining to the 
functions of the NACIQI.

How may I obtain access to the records of the meeting?

    We will record the meeting, and the meeting transcript will be 
available for public inspection on the NACIQI Web site: http://www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/naciqi.html, for up until approximately a 
year after the meeting.

How may I obtain electronic access to this document?

    You may view this document, as well as all other Department of 
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe 
Portable Document Format (PDF), on the Internet at the following site: 
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister. To use PDF, you must have 
Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at this site. If you have 
questions about using PDF, call the U.S. Government Printing Office 
(GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or, in the Washington, DC, area at 
(202) 512-1530.

    Note: The official version of this document is the document 
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the 
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal 
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/index.html.

    Delegation of Authority: The Secretary of Education has delegated 
authority to Daniel T. Madzelan, Director, Forecasting and Policy 
Analysis for the Office of Postsecondary Education, to perform the 
functions and duties of the Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary 
Education.

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. Appendix 2.

    Dated: April 20, 2010.
Daniel T. Madzelan,
Director, Forecasting and Policy Analysis.
[FR Doc. 2010-9516 Filed 4-22-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
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